Review: Seeing Redd (The Looking Glass Wars, #2) by Frank Beddor

Spoiler warning! This is the second book in The Looking Glass Wars trilogy so this review will contain spoilers for the first book. If you haven't read The Looking Glass Wars then you can read my review of that here instead. You have been warned!

Seeing Redd by Frank Beddor

[Goodreads page]

Author: Frank Beddor Website|Twitter
Published: 3 September 2007 (Egmont)
Format: Paperback
Pages: 384
Amazon: Paperback|Audio
Waterstone's: Paperback
Book Depository: Paperback

Source: Borrowed from friend

Plot Summary (from Goodreads):
Alyss of Wonderland's rule has only just begun, and already those who prefer chaos to peace are threatening to destroy everything worth imagining. Trailed by newly appointed royal bodyguard Homburg Molly, Alyss is doing her best to keep pace with the non-stop demands of being queen while attempting to evade Molly for a few private moments with Dodge.

Alyss' life is a challenging mix of duty, love and tough decisions, and then a series of phantom sightings set fire to an urban myth of Her Imperial Viciousness' return and have everyone...Seeing Redd.

Has Redd somehow freed herself and her chief assassin, The Cat, from the confides of the Heart Crystal? If not, then who has resurrected Redd's brutal foot soldiers the Glass Eyes and set them loose to attack Wonderland on all sides? 

My Review:
I really enjoyed the first book in this series so was excited to get into this one. Seeing Redd follows Queen Alyss as she adjusts to her life-changing new role, all the while knowing that Redd could be out there somewhere threatening the people of Wonderland.

What was interesting about this book was how much Alyss herself took a backseat to the story, but I actually quite liked that. It meant the spotlight moved to other characters such as Redd herself and my new favourite character - Homburg Molly. Her story had me completely invested and I really liked her fiesty atitude. As Alyss' bodyguard she has some kick-ass moves but she also has a lot going on in her mind, as she has to deal with stuff relating to her past and parentage. I loved the issue of halfers being addressed - people who are half-civilian/half-Millinery. It gave a real insight into the world Beddor has created and the prejudices which arise in that world.

Going back to Alyss, it was good to see a different side of her. In the first book she came across as more confident and self-assured, where as in Seeing Redd you got to see a lot more of her insecurities. I found that really fascinating and it was great getting to explore some of her character flaws and depths. I really enjoyed her plotline with Dodge and their developing relationship. I thought it was really sweet and my love for Dodge grew even more! Even though Alyss seemed slightly quieter throughout this book, she totally came into her own when it came to the back end of the story and I loved her key role in that.

Plot wise, I felt this book was more of a slow-burner than the first book, but in no way is that a negative! The suspense throughout was brilliant and there was this great build up as we learn what each respective party is plotting. I loved that you got to see Redd planning her comeback whereas at the same time you got to see the fear and worry she's causing to Alyss and Wonderland. It made the climax of the story even more exciting as well, because there'd been all that build up.

My only real flaw was that some of the more fast-paced action scenes were quite follow. I'd just struggle to keep up with exactly what was happening because some of the things were so fantastical that I couldn't get my head around it all. Otherwise it was a really enjoyable read.

Seeing Redd is a fantastic follow up to The Looking Glass Wars and is ultimately a great tale of good versus evil. The characters are so well written and interesting that I loved reading about them and seeing both their highlights and their flaws. I'm really looking forward to reading the final book in the trilogy.

Rating: 4*
What to read next: Arch Enemy by Frank Beddor, the final book in The Looking Glass Wars trilogy
Books like this: Splintered by A. G. Howard

Review: Through the Looking-Glass by Lewis Carroll

Through the Looking-Glass by Lewis Carrol 

[Goodreads page]

Author: Lewis Carroll. Website
Published: 1871 (Originally published)
Format: Hardback Illustrated Edition (Macmillan)
Pages: 192
Project Gutenberg: E-book 
Amazon: Paperback|Kindle
Waterstone's: Paperback|e-book
Book Depository: Paperback
Challenge: 2013 Children's Classics Challenge
Source: Own

Plot Summary (from Goodreads):
Nothing is quite what it seems once Alice journeys through the looking-glass, and Dodgson's wit is infectious as he explores concepts of mirror imagery, time running backward, and strategies of chess-all wrapped up in the exploits of a spirited young girl who parries with the Red Queen, Tweedledee and Tweedledum, and other unlikely characters.  

My Review:
I really enjoyed Alice in Wonderland when I finally got round to reading it as part of my challenge, so I was excited to read Through the Looking-Glass! Once again we join Alice, only this time she takes a trip through a mirror over her fireplace and finds herself in a topsy-turvey world and meets more wonderful characters.

I liked that this book started out with Alice in her cats, as she spend so much time talking about Dinah in Alice in Wonderland. This book took a little longer to get into the actual story but once it did I absolutely fell in love with the idea. Wondering what would happen if you could get inside your mirror is such a wonderfully imaginative idea that I'm sure we've all guessed and wondered at as a child. It certainly gave me that nostalgic feeling reading it! I love how Carroll played with the idea of things being backwards like time going the wrong way and people doing things in the wrong order.

I was happy to be reunited with Alice as I just think she's a fantastic character. I love how her imagination is so key to everything and it's almost encouraged to be that imaginative.Her attitude and ways of speaking really helped add that humour to the story.

My favourite part of this book was all the little poems and songs throughout the book, from the Jabberwocky to the Knight's song. Just reading them I could hear little tunes or hear the characters voices in my mind and it really helped bring it all to life. As with Alice in Wonderland I loved the play on words. My favourite bits were the mentions of the rocking-horse-fly and the bread-and-butter-fly which just had me grinning from ear to ear.

The story itself was a little lacking in something - it didn't seem to go anywhere or feel like much of a journey - but I don't think it spoilt the enjoyment too much. It's one of those books that's just a pleasure to read even if it doesn't fulfill much. The ending was quite abrupt and took me a little surprise but I think I liked it! There's no reason to read Alice in Wonderland and not read Through the Looking-Glass and it only took me an afternoon to read, so I'd highly recommend them both for a fun bit of escapism.

Rating: 4*
What to read next: The Looking Glass Wars by Frank Beddor
Books like this: Splintered by A. G. Howard